So what may be the most important Chapter 11 proceeding in modern history has begun -- important not just because it is large, but because the court in a sense is being asked to validate or invalidate the unprecedented power grab by the Obama administration. The results of this trial may well slow or accelerate America's devolution into a European-style corporate state where political pull rather than costs or products determine corporate success. It also will have a lot to say as to whether the rule of law has any meaning any more, at least as far as President's go.

The first salvo, by the non-TARP secured creditors that Obama was unsuccessful in beating down, has been fired:

Just hitting the Chrysler bankruptcy docket is an objection filed by W&C on behalf of its clients, objecting to the 363 asset sale. The filing is attached below (and linked here). Some very harsh language with regards to Uncle Sam in there...

This is probably only the tip of the iceberg. I think if creditors start to see that the bankruptcy judge is unwilling to automatically roll over for the administration, more such revelations will emerge. The blog Finem Respice has a doozy, though it is unsourced and so must be treated with caution.

Watching the example being made of these bondholders - in the future, who, in their right mind, would ever lend money to a business with a large unionized workforce? Oh yeah - that's right, the government run banks... Silly me.

stan

Is the application of the rule of law considered a "civil liberty" by the ACLU crowd? Unlikely, but this case is more important than most of those that get that crowd pumped up.

AA

This case truly does have it all, issues of due process, absolute priority, hell even the takings clause, with Obama, the Treasury and the UAW in one corner, reluctantly joined by the TARP-lenders. And in the other corner, the non-TARP lenders, and the shape of bankruptcy law, if not the TARP, to come. This will be entertaining to say the least.

Can we have a new word? Fascism is too historically wrecked to be used to effect in modern discourse. As such, we need a new word for fascism, which meams simply fascism without the jewish murder.

DKN

LoneSnark,
"Can we have a new word?"

"Obamunism" has been going the rounds.

markm

Lonesnark: "Fascism" proper (Mussolini's version) was without the Jewish murder, as long as Mussolini was really in charge. And the third European fascist state - Franco's Spain - actually took in and saved some Jews during WWII. Murdering potential enemies is a characteristic of fascism; spending so much energy murdering non-enemies simply shows up one of the defects of fascist systems, their vulnerability to the mental quirks of a single man.